Fovant
| Fovant | |
 Two of the Fovant Badges |
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  Fovant |
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| Population | 669 (2011)[1] |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | SU004289 |
| Civil parish | Fovant |
| Unitary authority | Wiltshire |
| Ceremonial county | Wiltshire |
| Region | South West |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | SALISBURY |
| Postcode district | SP3 |
| Dialling code | 01722 |
| Police | Wiltshire |
| Fire | Wiltshire |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| EU Parliament | South West England |
| UK Parliament | South West Wiltshire |
| Website | Fovant Parish Council |
Coordinates: 51°03′32″N 1°59′46″W / 51.059°N 1.996°W
Fovant is a medium-sized village and civil parish in southwest Wiltshire, England. It is located between Salisbury and Shaftesbury on the A30 road in the Nadder valley. Its name is derived from the Old English Fobbefunta, meaning "spring of a man called Fobbe".
Governance
The village is part of the 'Fovant and Chalke Valley' electoral ward. The ward begins in the Netherhampton parish just to the west of Salisbury, stretches west to Bishopstone and north west to Fovant, ending at Tollard Royal. The population of the ward at the 2011 census was 4,315.[2]
Military connections
During the First World War, temporary camps were built in the Fovant area to handle training and medical treatment of soldiers, and later their demobilisation.[3] The Fovant Military Railway was built in 1915 from Dinton station, passing close to Fovant with a terminus east of the village near the A30. The camps stretched beyond Compton Chamberlayne into Barford St Martin parish, and included Hurdcott Camp which was a depot of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF).[4]
The area is known for several regimental badges cut in chalk into a nearby hill (also being the site of Chiselbury Iron age hillfort), created by soldiers garrisoned near Fovant.
Community Facilities
The Anglican Church of St George is Grade II* listed.[5] Dating from the 13c., it is constructed largely of local Chilmark stone.[6] The tower contains a peal of 6 bells: the oldest from the 15c., four from the 19c. and one from the 20c.[7]
Originally with three public houses, Fovant currently has no functioning pub following the closure of The Pembroke Arms in August 2012 (having changed management a number of times in recent years, it is now for sale). Fovant also has a village playing field and playground.
Fovant has a post office (closed April 2011 but re-opened in the village shop), village shop and a doctor's surgery all at the south end of the village. The post office used to be locally well known for having vehicles crash into its front wall, mostly at night as the road bends in an unexpected manner at the bottom of the hill.
References
- ↑ "Wiltshire Community History - Census". Wiltshire Council. Retrieved 15 August 2014.
- ↑ "Fovant and Chalk Valley ward 2011.Retrieved 12 March 2015".
- ↑ "Camps around Fovant during World War I". Fovant History Interest Group. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
- ↑ "C00628 - Soldiers and huts at Hurdcott Camp". Australian War Memorial. c. 1916. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
- ↑ "List entry - Church of St George, Fovant". English Heritage. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
- ↑ http://www.fovanthistory.org/entry_point.html
- ↑ http://dove.cccbr.org.uk/detail.php?searchString=Fovant&Submit=+Go+&DoveID=FOVANT
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Fovant. |